The long-awaited “Universal Restriction Proposal” – officially known as the Annex XV Restriction Repor – targeting f-gases that are per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), also known as “forever chemicals,” has been unveiled.
The restriction submitters, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden, call for restricting the manufacture, placing on the market and use of PFAS.
Those countries are concerned by the common properties of these substances, such as persistence, and their widespread uses across society and industries. There is a dearth of knowledge regarding some of them, which, following a group approach analysis, would be a reasonable cause for concern.
This restriction would include fluorinated greenhouse gases such as HFCs and HFOs. Among the most commonly used, HFC-125, HFC-134a, HFC-143a, HFO-1234yf, HFO-1234ze(E), HFO–1336mzz(Z) and HFO-1336mzz(E) would be subject to this restriction. This proposal would consider also TFA as an atmospheric degradation product of, notably, HFO-1234yf (100% conversion) and HFC-134a (up to 20% conversion).
Some time-related derogations are proposed at this initial stage for f-gases that are PFAS.
More information can be found here.
Next steps
A six-month consultation is planned to start on March 22, 2023. An online information session will be organized on April 5, 2023, to explain the restriction process and help those interested in participating in the consultation.
ATMOsphere, a member of the Coalition, will organize a webinar with ChemSec in March to explain how to submit feedback to ECHA during the consultation stage.
